Embry-Riddle Beach Vault: Fun at the Beach

On a beautiful Saturday, competitors of all ages converged at the beach to test their ability to vault over a bar. Competitors ranged from middle schoolers to post-collegiate competitors trying to qualify for Olympic Trials to masters athletes who have done this for over forty years. All of the competitors raved about the event and had a great time jumping in front of the crowd of beach goers who watched and cheered them along.

The athletes and coaches at Embry-Riddle hosted the event and arrived early in the morning to rake and level the sand. Then they installed a 130 foot raised runway built with 2 x 4’s and plywood with a track surface rolled on top. Once the mat was laid, we had a very unique event as the pole vault was beachside instead of the track. Competitors raved about the runway with almost all 50 competitors commenting on how fast it was. Mark Peters, a master competitor said, “In 42 years of vaulting, this is the fastest runway that I have ever seen.” Add to the runway a nice tail wind and competitors were flying. Several competitors hit their personal best and all said they cannot wait for next year.

The event was highlighted by the performances of the post-collegiate as both Elliot Haynie and Sean Young pushed to qualify for Olympic Trials. Sean Young won the event and just missed his attempts at the B standard for Olympic Trials.

Embry-Riddle athletes faired well also, with Adam Holdsworth leading the way. Holdsworth hit a personal best 4.95 meters to win the collegiate men’s section. Megan Bumby lead the way for the Eagle women finishing third in the women’s event and just missing her personal best.

The event was split into five categories: Pre-High School, High School, College, Post-College and Masters. The winners in the various age groups were: